While sipping hot chocolate last
night, I thought about what changes have occurred in the United States since
1913. While I was not alive during that
time, I can assure you that thinks were much different. Some of the obvious things [between then and
now] are: women earning the right to vote, interracial marriages are now
acceptable (as well as interracial schools, etc.), the United States electing
its first catholic president (President John F. Kennedy in 1960) and its first
African American President (President Barack H. Obama in 2008), and an increase
in military actions including being engaged in two world wars. However, there are many things that haven’t
changed despite the change a century can bring. For example, unemployment still
remains high in many parts of the country, Germany is still mad at the United
States (due to the drone tactics so in a sense military intervention), ships
keep hitting things and sinking (like the Costa Concordia), and the United
States being engaged in a war overseas based on an attack to the nation (except
it wasn’t a ship or a torpedo, it was airplanes flying into buildings like
torpedoes). Out of all of the things
that have not changed, technology has paved the way for America to be more
isolated while still maintaining a façade of global communications. Technology
seems to be making the general public more secluded or reserved while being
less engaging and less intelligent.
I don’t mean to be insulting, but
it’s true. If someone doesn’t know
something, more than a majority of people will resort to the common phrase,
“here, let me google that,” or “I’ll google it.” We have become so reliant on technology to
the point it being mundane. I realize it
is the future and it is important for it to ensure progress within a society,
but I firmly believe that if we were not so “connected” with the various
outlets of technology, then [we the] people wouldn’t be as stressed or have
other health-related issues.
I have taken extra steps to not
tweet or Facebook – well, not so much Facebook, but definitely Twitter or
Pintrest – within the past week and it has been rewarding. I have even turned my cell phone on to
“vibrate” mode and noticed that I got a lot more accomplished around my
apartment (my laundry and dishes are finally happy to be clean and resting in
their respective places). I just think if people would “unplug” once in a
while, everybody would be happier. In 1913, if the power went out or the radio
became broken, people would actually just go on living their lives and even
spend time with their families. If the
power goes out today, I know people would either go crazy of boredom or run
their cell phone battery down tweeting or updating their status on Facebook
about the power being out and hoping their favorite show will still get
recorded on their DVR.
Yes, technology is a good thing;
but, too much of a good thing can be rendered into a harmful thing. Let’s not
abuse our technology because if we ever do lose it, we wouldn’t know how to
survive. If the power is out, credit card machines don’t work, ATM machines are
down, and gas pumps turned off…can you sustain yourself if something like this
happened for more than two hours? What about a week? Luckily, I know how to
garden (notice I didn’t say I had a green thumb, haha) and I know how to barter
if needed, do you? The people in 1913 never thought anything could happen to
them; but, in 1929 on a day known as “Black Thursday” that all changed. Is history destined to repeat itself or have
we learn to correct our mistakes?
